Reliability & validity

Reliability

How consistent the findings from an investigation are or how consistent the measuring device is

Validity

How genuine and true to real life the psychologists method is

Demand characteristics

When participants believe they know the hypothesis of the experiment so they change their behaviour

Investigator effects

When the researcher unconsciously influences the research by physical or personal characteristics

Internal validity

Any findings found in the study are due to the manipulation of only the independent variable

External validity

If findings from a study can be applied to other situations, people & times

What parts are there to external validity?

Ecological, mundane, temporal

Ecological validity

If findings can be applied to real life situations

Mundane realism

How real to life the tasks that the participants are completing is

Temporal validity

Whether findings are true across different time periods